Political commentary from the LA Times

Friday scandal update: From Spitzer to Ensign to Sanford to Edwards

You have to give Democratic ex-N.Y. Gov. Eliot Spitzer credit for understanding a simple fact: The American public’s attention span is about as long as a TV commercial. If it's short and zippy.

When Spitzer got busted for hiring prostitutes in 2008, he immediately resigned. Now “the hooker-happy Democrat,” as the New York Post dubbed him, is contemplating a somewhat-plausible comeback.

Other politicians caught in flagrante delicto have taken a markedly different route: They haven’t stepped down. So how’s that working out for Republicans South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford and Nevada Sen. John Ensign?

Critics say the Republicans, whose rise and fall have eerie parallels (voting for Democrat President Clinton’s impeachment over his sex scandal among them, have been rendered ineffective by their decisions to stay in office. As long as they’re public figures, the argument goes, someone will be poking around for new details of their scandals.

So in South Carolina, even Republicans are throwing around the word “impeachment” in regard to a governor who reportedly used state funds while turning “hiking the Appalachian Trail” into a double entendre.